I

ESSAY XV.

Of the PROTESTANT SUCCESSION,

SUPPOSE, that a member of parliament, in the reign

of King WILLIAM or Queen ANNE, while the establishment of the Proteftant Succeffion was yet uncertain, were deliberating concerning the party he would chufe in that important queftion, and weighing, with impartiality, the advantages and disadvantages on each fide. I believe the following particulars would have entered into his confideration.

He would easily perceive the great advantage resulting from the restoration of the STUART family; by which we should preferve the fucceffion clear and undisputed, free from a pretender, with fuch a fpecious title as that of blood, which, with the multitude, is always the claim, the strongest and most easily comprehended. It is in vain to fay, as many have done, that the question with regard to governors, independent of government, is frivolous, and little worth difputing, much lefs fighting about. The generality of mankind never will enter into these fentiments; and it is much happier, I believe, for fociety, that they do not, but rather continue in their natural prepoffeffions. How could ftability be preserved in any monarchical government, (which, though, perhaps, not the best, is, and always has been, the most common of any) unless men had fo paffionate a regard for the true K k 4

heir

heir of their royal family; and even though he be weak in understanding, or infirm in years, gave him fo fenfible a preference above perfons the most accomplished in hining talents, or celebrated for great atchievements ? Would not every popular leader put in his claim at every vacancy, or even without any vacancy; and the kingdom become the theatre of perpetual wars and convulfions? The condition of the ROMAN empire, furely, was not, in this respect, much to be envied; nor is that of the Eaftern nations, who pay little regard to the titles of their fovereign, but facrifice them, every day, to the caprice or momentary humour of the populace or foldiery. It is but a foolish wifdom, which is fo carefully displayed, in undervaluing princes, and placing them on a level with the meaneft of mankind. To be fure, an anatomift finds no more in the greatest monarch than in the lowest peafant or day-labourer; and a moralift may, perhaps, frequently find lefs. But what do all these reflections tend to? We, all of us, ftill retain these prejudices in favour of birth and family; and neither in our ferious occupations, nor moft careless amusements, can we ever get entirely rid of them. A tragedy, that should reprefent the adventures of failors, or porters, or even of private gentlemen, would prefently difguft us; but one that introduces kings and princes, acquires in our eyes an air of importance and dignity. Or fhould a man be able, by his fuperior wildom, to get entirely above fuch prepoffeffions, he would foon, by means of the fame wisdom, again bring himself down to them, for the fake of fociety, whofe welfare he would perceive to be intimately connected with them. Far from endeavouring to undeceive the people in this particular, he would cherish such sentiments of reverence to their princes; as requifite to preferve a due fubordination in fociety. And though the

lives of twenty thousand men be often facrificed to maintain aking in poffeffion of his throne, or preserve the right of fucceffion undisturbed, he entertains no indignation at the lofs, on pretence that every individual of thefe was, perhaps, in himfelf, as valuable as the prince he ferved. He confiders the consequences of violating the hereditary right of kings: Confequences, which may be felt for many centuries; while the lofs of feveral thousand men brings fo little prejudice to a large kingdom, that it may not be perceived a few years after.

The advantages of the HANOVER fucceffion are of an oppofite nature, and arife from this very circumftance, that it violates hereditary right; and places on the throne a prince, to whom birth gave no title to that dignity. It is evident, from the hiftory of this island, that the privileges of the people have, during the two laft centuries, been continually upon the encrease, by the divifion of the church-lands, by the alienations of the barons' eftates, by the progrefs of trade, and above all, by the happiness of our fituation, which, for a long time, gave us fufficient fecurity, without any standing army or military establishment. On the contrary, public liberty has, almost in every other nation of EUROPE, been, during the fame period, extremely upon the decline; while the people were disgusted at the hardships of the old feudal militia, and rather chose to entrust their prince with mercenary armies, which he eafily turned against themselves. It was nothing extraordinary, therefore, that fome of our BRITISH fovereigns mistook the nature of the conftitution, at leaft, the genius of the people; and as they embraced all the favourable precedents left them by their ancestors, they overlooked all those which were contrary, and which supposed a limitation in our government. They were encouraged in this mistake, by the example of all the neighbouring

princes,

princes, who bearing the fame title or appellation, and being adorned with the fame enfigns of authority, naturally led them to claim the fame powers and prerogatives. It appears from the fpeeches, and proclamations of JAMES I. and the whole train of that prince's actions, as well as his fon's, that he regarded the ENGLISH government as a fimple monarchy, and never imagined that any confiderable part of his fubjects entertained a contrary idea. This opinion made thofe monarchs difcover their pretenfions, without preparing any force to fupport them; and even without referve or difguife, which are always employed by those, who enter upon any new project, or endeavour to innovate in any government. The flattery of courtiers farther confirmed their prejudices; and above all, that of the clergy, who from feveral paffages of fcripture, and these wrefted too, hrad erected a regular and avowed fyftem of arbitrary power. The only method of destroying, at once, all thefe high claims and pretenfions, was to depart from the true hereditary line, and choofe a prince, who, being plainly a creature of the public, and receiving the crown on conditions, expreffed and avowed, found his authority established on the fame bottom with the privileges of the people. By electing him in the royal line, we cut off all hopes of ambitious fubjects, who might, in future emergencies, difturb the government by their cabals and pretenfions By rendering the crown hereditary in his family, we avoided all the inconveniencies of elective monarchy: And by excluding the lineal heir, we fecured all our conftitutional limitations, and rendered our government uniform and of a piece. The people cherish monarchy, becaufe protected by it: The monarch fayours liberty, because created by it. And thus every advantage

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advantage is obtained by the new establishment, as far as human skill and wifdom can extend itself.

These are the feparate advantages of fixing the fucceffion, either in the houfe of STUART, or in that of HANOVER. There are alfo difadvantages in each eftablishment, which an impartial patriot would ponder and examine, in order to form a juft judgment upon the whole.

The disadvantages of the proteftant fucceffion confift in the foreign dominions, which are poffeffed by the princes of the HANOVER line, and which, it might be fuppofed, would engage us in the intrigues and wars of the continent, and lofe us, in fome meafure, the ineftimable advantage we poffefs, of being furrounded and guarded by the fea, which we command. The disadvantages of recalling the abdicated family confift chiefly in their religion, which is more prejudicial to fociety than that established amongst us, is contrary to it, and affords no toleration, or peace, or fecurity to any other communion.

It appears to me, that thefe advantages and difadvantages are allowed on both fides; at least, by every one who is at all fufceptible of argument or reasoning. No fubject, however loyal, pretends to deny, that the dif puted title and foreign dominions of the prefent royal family are a lofs. Nor is there any partizan of the STUARTS, but will confefs, that the claim of hereditary, indefeasible right, and the Roman Catholic religion, are alfo disadvantages in that family. It belongs, therefore, to a philofopher alone, who is of neither party, to put all these circumftances in the fcale, and affign to each of them its proper poife and influence. Such a one will readily, at firft, acknowledge, that all political queftions are infinitely complicated, and that there

fcarcely